Current command protocols in satellite-based telecommunication systems are not suited for transporting, storing and executing payload control instructions. Most conventional satellite systems operate from a centralized, mission-unique command architecture. Such architectures provide at most a low level of standardization. One command standard, the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) Telecommand Data System Standard, defines a fully layered service, principally specifying the transport and physical layers. However, it does not specify the format and operations of the data management layer. The CCSDS standard and other known technologies do not support synchronous control of a large number of non-synchronous orbiting satellites in a packet-switched network.
Accordingly, there is a significant need for methods for managing and distributing payload instructions in a satellite-based telecommunication system.